Common Shares ‘Ghetto Dreams’ With Nas on New Album

Common will release his ninth studio album, 'The Dreamer, The Believer,' in 2011, and he tells TheBoomBox it will pair him with one of hip-hop's elite. "I have a remix already for a song I have called 'Ghetto Dreams.' It has Nas on it," Common reveals.

Still, don't expect a ton of collaborations on the album, as Common prefers to speak on his own musically. "When somebody buys an album they're looking to hear you," he says. "They're buying your album for you or a song that they love that you do, and you have to be able to stand on your own."

But, as we've already mentioned, Common doesn't always stand alone, especially if there's a cause behind it. The Chicago-bred rapper recently teamed with fellow Chicagoans Jennifer Hudson and Lupe Fiasco on the No-ID produced 'We Can Do It Now,' a song commissioned for the Gatorade-fueled series, 'Replay,' where athletes get a chance for a do over on the biggest game of their career. Season three found two Chi-town high schools -- Bloom Township and Brother Rice -- revisiting a state playoff game from a decade ago.

For Common, a high school basketball player who still loves to hit the court, being around sports was a thrill. "I love sports so much, so anything I can do revolving around sports, especially basketball or football, I'm there," he says. "I felt honored and inspired to be working with Jennifer and Lupe. It was a win, win-win, win."